The New Renault Duster AWD: All you need to know

After years of wait, you can now buy a sensible all wheel drive vehicle, without spending too much. The Renault Duster AWD has been launched today and has been priced attractively at Rs. 11.89 lakh (Ex-showroom, Delhi) for the RxL variant and Rs. 12.99 lakh for the top end RxZ variant. The new rugged Renault will appeal to those who wish to go off-road in a robust, rugged and agile SUV, but would like to remain enclosed within the atmosphere of a comfortable sedan like cabin.

So the new AWD Duster is cosmetically the same, except a few changes on the outside, which are limited to blackened B-pillars, smoked headlamps and a tail gate that carries a 4WD badge. Alloy wheels are finished in graphite grey, while the other bits remain similar to the front wheel drive Duster.

On the inside, the 3-spoke steering wheel is new and comes with switches for cruise control, audio and telephony. The instrument cluster is lined with chrome and features an MID screen which shows information like real time efficiency, distance-to-empty and outside temperature. The new infotainment system is a touchscreen unit that offers navigation too. The dashboard is finished in a two-tone shade of black and grey while the AWD switch sits at the bottom of the center console.

The Renault Duster AWD comes with an intelligent ‘i drive’ all wheel drive system which comes in shift-by-fly options of 2WD, which sends power to only the front wheels, an AUTO mode which distributes power to the rear wheels only when required and a lock mode which distributes power to all the four wheels at speeds lesser than 60 kph. A 6-speed transmission is mated to the 1.5-litre, K9K diesel engine that produces 110 PS of power and 248 Nm of torque at 2250 RPM. The SUV comes with an ARAI rated efficiency figure of 19.72 kmpl, while an ECO Mode reduces fuel consumption by up to 10%.

The Duster AWD comes fitted with an all-wheel independent multi-link suspension and Electronic Torque Control (ETC), which ensures intelligent torque distribution to all wheels for high speed high torque balance. Other features include Electronic Stability programme (ESP), Anti-Skid resistance (ASR) and Hill Start Assist.